Grace & Peace

Grace & Peace: Revelation 89

Douglas Wilson on March 6, 2018

“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16:11).

“And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God. And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God. And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest” (Rev. 15:1–4).

Seven angels are introduced here, and we are given sort of a prelude to the next round of judgments. Their approach is said to be another “sign in heaven,” and it was a sign that was “great and marvelous.” These are described as the seven last plagues, meaning that we are now talking about the final and complete destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. They bring with them the fullness of the wrath of God. This is it.

We will see in v. 6 that these angels come out of the heavenly temple, and so it is not surprising that we also see various aspects of temple worship described, which would include the crystal or glass sea. This is not a lake or an ocean out in front of the temple, but is rather the laver that in the Old Testament was made of bronze, in which the priests would wash themselves. The word here is thalassa, which is the same word used in the Septuagint for the bronze laver (1 Kings 7:23). As the laver was used for purification of the worshipers, the fact that the glass here was mingled with fire probably indicates cleansing in Heaven, as opposed to mass destruction on earth. The original laver for the tabernacle was small, in which the priests would wash their hands and feet (Ex. 30:17-21; 40:30-32). Solomon’s version was huge, resting on the backs of bulls. It probably represented the Red Sea, and the great victory that God had won for Israel there. The heavenly version was greater still, and represented a greater victory still.

Those who had gained the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name—meaning the believers who had stood firm in the Neronian persecution—were given the harps of God and they all stood on the sea of glass in order to be able to sing. They were purified at the laver, and then presented their praise.

We are told that these faithful ones sang two songs. The first was the song of Moses, indicating that Jerusalem was identified with the old Egypt that had fallen under judgment. Just as Egypt had been left a smoldering ruin, so also Jerusalem was going to be left the same way. The second song was the song of the Lamb, and we are given the content of that song.

This chapter began with the sign in Heaven being described as “great and marvelous,” and here that phrase is repeated. They sang that the works of the Lord God Almighty were great and marvelous. He is the King of saints, and His ways are just and true. His name shall be glorified, and they sing that no one will fail to fear Him. And why? Because He alone is the Holy One, and all nations will come and worship before Him. They will do so because His judgments, in all their severity, will be made manifest now.

Just as Miriam and the women with her danced on the shores of the Red Sea, so the faithful ones who stood against Nero will sing as they stand on the Crystal Sea. The thing they share in common is the fact that they know that the songs of the saints in Heaven provide the soundtrack for judgments on earth. The ferocity of God’s judgments when they finally fall upon the insolence of rebellious man is not “a problem” to be apologized for. The ferocity of God’s judgments are here celebrated, and we see that they are the basis for all the nations of men coming to their senses and streaming to the Lord of the nations, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Why will the nations come and worship? Because the wrath of God has been made manifest.

Grace & Peace: Revelation 88

Douglas Wilson on February 27, 2018

“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16:11).

“And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them. And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe. And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped. And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe. And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs” (Rev. 14:13-20).

The martyrs earlier had been gathered under the altar (Rev. 6:9), and their prayers were on the golden altar (Rev. 8:3). They were blessed, but not exactly at rest—they were given white robes so they could rest “for a little season.” They cried out in a loud voice for God to show His righteous vengeance. But now the times of vengeance have come, the time was complete. Jerusalem was now to be destroyed, and this means that all the saints who die from this point on are blessed. There are seven benedictions pronounced in Revelation, and this is the second of the seven (Rev. 1:3; 14:13; 16:15; 19:9; 20:6; 22:7, 14). The saints who will die from this point on have the privilege of resting from their labors (v. 13), and their works follow them to their rest. A voice from Heaven declared this benediction, and the Spirit reinforced it.

[Read more…]

Grace & Peace: Revelation 87

Douglas Wilson on February 20, 2018

“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16:11).

“And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus” (Rev. 14:9–12).

A third angel arrives and delivers his warning in a loud voice. This warning concerns anyone who worships the beast and/or the image of the beast. This would be done by receiving the mark of the beast on the forehead or on the hand. Taking such a mark is an indication of total dedication, total allegiance. That being the case, God’s response to this impudence is total judgment.

We saw earlier that those who refused this mark were denied the privilege of buying and selling (Rev. 13:17). But those who take the mark are given the wine of the wrath of God to drink. It is the wine of wrath (thymos), and it is poured into the cup of wrath (orge), and it is poured in an unmixed form into the cup they must drink from. In this life, the wrath of God is revealed against the ungodliness of men (Rom. 1:18), but in this life it is always mixed with common grace. The ancients used to dilute wine with water in order to “cut” it, and they also used to add spices to their wine in order to increase the kick. The two words used here refer to both practices, one in reverse. This wine is mingled with spices and unmixed with water. It is a hard drink.

[Read more…]

Grace & Peace: Revelation 86

Douglas Wilson on February 13, 2018

“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16:11).

“And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication” (Rev. 14:8).

This is the first place in the Revelation where the name Babylon makes its entrance. The Babylon that is introduced in this place has her fall actually described a few chapters later, in chapter 18. A great deal of ink has been spilled in trying to identify this Babylon, and both here and in the sections that follow I will hazard my reasons for supposing Babylon to be Jerusalem—the city doomed to destruction throughout the course of this entire book.

[Read more…]

Grace & Peace: Revelation 85

Douglas Wilson on February 6, 2018

“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16:11).

“And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters” (Rev. 14:6–7).

We should first consider the fact that in this place the gospel is being proclaimed by a flying angel in the midst of the sky. We know from the record of Scripture that the gospel was fundamentally entrusted to the church, and not to angels (Matt. 28:18-20). But the fact that men are the ordinary preachers of gospel does not require the angels to be silent about it, as in this instance the angel isn’t. When Paul chides the Galatians for drifting away from the gospel, he says this: “But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed” (Gal. 1:8). The problem here was that it was a different gospel, and not the fact that it was preached by an angel. So ordinarily men are to preach the gospel, but this proclamation from the heavens fits in with what we are taught elsewhere.

We are coming to the climax of God’s wrath being poured out over Jerusalem, and Jesus had predicted this very thing before that destruction. “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come” (Matt. 24:14). This angel speaks to all nations—to “them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people.” This is a sign that the demolition of Jerusalem is about to happen.

This angel preaches, it says, with a “loud voice.” What is the content of what he says? What is the shape of this everlasting gospel? What the angel says here fits in with what we are taught elsewhere. He says that men are to “fear God” (Luke 1:50; Luke 12:5). “But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him” (Acts 10:35). He says that men must “give glory to him” (Matt. 5:16; Matt. 9:8). “Insomuch that the multitude wondered, when they saw the dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and the blind to see: and they glorified the God of Israel” (Matt. 15:31). He says that “the hour of his judgment is come” (John 12:23, 31-32). “And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because they believe not on me; Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged” (John 16:8–11). And as we saw in the first chapters of Genesis, the God of the gospel is the God who made all things—whether “heaven, and earth, and the sea,” or “the fountains of waters.”

In short, what the angel declared in the preparation for Jerusalem’s destruction sounds very much like what the apostle Paul declared.

“God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; Neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things; And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man’s device. And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead” (Acts 17:24–31).